Home
About
Features
Search

Episodes

Episodes is a column in which senior contributor Valerie Ettenhofer digs into the singular chapters of television that make the medium great.

If you’re new to reading this column, we suggest starting with these:

Explore the entire Episodes archive below

Golden Girls Sick And Tired

What the ‘Golden Girls’ Chronic Illness Episode Means to Me

By   

Dorothy’s traumatic and frustrating journey through the medical system hits close to home for people who live with chronic illnesses, like our TV critic Valerie Ettenhofer.

Flight Of The Conchords Mugged

Remember When the Flight of the Conchords Got “Mugged”?

By   

HBO’s short-lived musical series was at its best when the protagonists wandered naively into strange situations, like in this Season 1 episode.

True Detective Who Goes There

Re-entering the Void with the Best Episode of ‘True Detective’

By   

The surreal HBO series’ first-season midpoint — “Who Goes There?” — careens into epically cinematic chaos.

Halt And Catch Fire Ten Of Swords

‘Halt and Catch Fire’ Reinvented Itself Until The Very End

By   

The series about the early days of the tech industry was in love with reinvention, and its series finale, “Ten of Swords,” made us love it too.

Fleabag Season 2 Episode4 Waller-Bridge

The Flashback Episode That Transformed ‘Fleabag’

By   

The fourth episode of Series 2 is sexy, sad, and the emotional key to the whole show.

Chernobyl Episode 1

On the Particular Devastation of the ‘Chernobyl’ Premiere

By   

For our Episodes column, we re-examine “1:23:45”, the bleak, fantastic first installment of HBO’s ‘Chernobyl’ miniseries.

Game Of Thrones Pilot

Revisiting the ‘Game Of Thrones’ Pilot 10 Years Later

By   

Before it was a worldwide phenomenon, it was just a new HBO show with a hell of a good hook.

Orphan Black Episode 1 Natural Selection

How ‘Orphan Black’ Hits the Ground Running with “Natural Selection”

By   

“Natural Selection” introduces viewers to the series’ fast-paced, thrilling world, as well as to the gift that keeps on giving: Tatiana Maslany’s powerhouse performances.

Justified Bloody Harlan Timothy Olyphant

‘Justified’ and the Battle of “Bloody Harlan”

By   

Justified’s second season finale, “Bloody Harlan,” is a master class in acting, directing, writing, and American myth-making.